The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Pieris, botanically known as Pieris japonica, and herinafter referred to by the name ‘Ralto’.
The new Pieris is a naturally-occurring branch mutation of the Pieris japonica cultivar Valley Valentine, not patented. The new Pieris was discovered and selected by the Inventor from within a population of plants of the cultivar Valley Valentine in a controlled environment in Zundert, The Netherlands in January, 2001.
Asexual reproduction of the new Pieris by cuttings taken in a controlled environment in Zundert, The Netherlands since January, 2001 has shown that the unique features of this new Pieris are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.